Bottle conveyer and drainer.



S. VOLZ.

BOTTLE GONVEYER AND DRAINBR.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 29, 1909.

Patented Nov. 19, 1912.

E r W! NESES. //v l/E/V ToR.

L1 7% M6M%m p Z )4 T TOR/VEYS.

onizrnn cradles ll IJEENT @ZFMEQEE.

SIMON 'VOLZ, OF MILWAUKEE, WISQOIISIN, ASSIGNOB. TO THE TWENTIETH CENTURY MACHINERY COMPANY, OF MILWJEKUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF ILLINGIS.

hotness.

BOTTLE CGNVEYER AND DRAIBIER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

itatented Nov. 319, fdifif.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, SIMON VoLz, residing in Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, have invented new and useful Improvements in Bottle Conveyers and Drainers, of which the following is a description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in bottle conveyors and drainers particularly adapted for use in breweries and other places where a large number of bottles are constantly being washed and drained preparatory to filling.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a bottle conveyer and drainer which is adaptedto support the bottles in position to be drained and at the same time convey the bottles from one end of the machine to the other.

A further object of this invention is to provide a bottle washer and drainer of the before mentioned type which is adapted to be operated only during the time the operator is in a position to remove the drained and conveyed bottles from the machine.

With the above, and other objects in view, the invention consists of the devices and parts, and their combinations.

In the accompanying drawing, in which the same reference characters indicate the same parts in all of the views; Figure 1 is a side view of the complete machine, a medial portion removed for convenience of illustration, and other parts in section; Fig. 2 is a front view thereof; and, Fig. 3 is a detail View in section of one of the trans verse conveyer bars and a portion of the supporting frame.

' Referring to the drawing the numeral 5 indicates the main frame of the machine which is of angle iron construction and may be of any convenient size or shape, but isprefcrably formed as shown with supporting legs 6 provided with casters and con nected together by horizontal side members 7 and 8 properly reinforced and braced to form a rigid stand or table. Brackets 9 forming part of the main frame and extending rearwardly therefrom and provided with adjustable bearing blocks 10 support a transverse shaft 11 mounted in the blocks thereof.

Sprocket wheels 12 fast to said shaftare adapted to carry an endless bottle conveyer and draining means consisting of sprocket chains 13 connected together by transverse holding rods or members 14 which are spaced apart a distance slightly less than the largest diameter of the bottles which the machine is adapted to drain. These holding rods or members also serve as pivot pins for the sprocket chain links and extend through saidlinks and on their outer ends are provided with anti-friction rollers 15- which are positioned to roll and have their hearing on angle iron rails 16 connected by rivets to the horizontal side members 7. The two sprocket chains are transversely spaced apart on the holding rods by rubber tubes 17 which surround each rod and are adapted to presenta yielding surface for the bottles to rest upon. The anti-friction rollers are held in position on the rods by cotter pins 18 connected thereto.

The conveyer chain is supported and driven from the front or righthand end of the machine by sprocket wheels 19 fast on a transverse shaft 20 mounted in blocks 21 connected to brackets 22 extending forwardly from the front end of the machine.

A worm wheel 23 meshing'with a worm 23 is loosely mounted on the shaft 20 and is adapted to be clutched thereto by a sliding clutch member 24: splined to the shaft. This clutch member is provided with teeth or jaws which are adapted to engage corresponding teeth formed on. the worm wheel, and the clutch member is adapted to he slid on the shaft by means of a forked bell crank lever 25 pivotally connected to the bracket. The clutch member is normally held out of engagement with the companion teeth formed on the worm wheel by a coiled spring 26 connected to the vertical arm of the bell crank lever and to the bracket. The short arm of the bell crank lever is connected to an operating member 27 upon which the opcrator stands by means of a connecting rod 28. The lower end of the operating lever is connected to the frame by means of a link 29 to prevent displacement thereof in moving the frame from place to place.

The worm 23 is fast on a shaft 30 which has ts bearings in a bracket 81 suspended from the shaft 20 and another bracket 32 depending fromfthe horizontal member 7 of the frame; A spiral gear 33 fast to the inner end of the shaft 86 and meshing with to permit the passage of trio current supplied to the motor.

v in the oonveyer as long another spiral gear stud shaft 35 projecting from the bracket 32 I is connected to a belt wheel 36 also mounted on the stud shaft.

A super frame 37 extends transversely across the machine from one horizontal side member to the other and at a sufficient height bottles carried on the endless conveyor therebeneath. An electric motor 38 positioned on said platform has a belted connection with thebelt wheel 36 by a belt 39 and is adapted to transmit motion to the endless conveyer. A knife switch 40 and a starter' ll mounted on the super frame are adapted to control the elec- In order to hold the bottles substantially upright while being moved by the endless conveyer in order to permit free drainage of the contents of said bottles, a guard rail 42 is connected to one of the horizontal side members and extends from one end of the machine to the other and bottles placed between the holding members in rows, are all inclined toward the guard and rest against each other and the last bottle in each row rests against the guard rail.

The use and operation of the machine are as follows: The bottles are washed and inserted between theholding members of the endless conveyer at the left hand end of the machine in an inverted position to thoroughly drain the contents thereof. The bottles are draining during the period of time the bottles are traveling with the conveyer' from the rear end of the machine to the front end and when the front end of the machine is reached the operator standing on the operating platform or member removes the drained bottles from the conveyer for filling. As long as the operator who removes the bottles stands on the platform or operating member the conveyer will continue to traveland the operator who places the bottles into the conveyer, and who may be at a considerable distance from the other operator, will continue to place the bottles as it continues to move, if however, the operator should leave the machine for any cause, the coiled spring connected to the bell crank lever would disengage the clutch member from the worm wheel and the movement of the endless conveyer would immediately stop and the filling 34 mounted on a short 7 operator would not have any empty spaces to fill, and would be compelled. to stop. As soon as the other operator returned and stepped on the operating member the clutch would be moved into engagement with the worm wheel and the movement of the conveyer immediately start again. Also, if the speed of feed of the bottles is too fast for the o-peratorto handle he can step off of the operating member from time to time and stop the feed until he catches up to the work.

If it is desired to move the machine from place to place the self-contained feature of the machine provides the opportunity to do so without disconnecting any of the mechanism.

Then the rubber tubes covering the holding rods become worn they may be individually replaced by removing a cotter pin and withdrawing the rod from one sprocket chain and from the tubing and replacing a new piece of tubing on the rod and connecting the parts as before.

If the rail should wear it may be easily replaced with a piece of commercial angle iron.

\Vhat I claim as my invention is:

1. A bottle conveyer and draiher, comprising a frame, an endless conveyer mounted on the frame, a motor carried by said frame, a motion transmission means between the motor and the endless conveyer, a clutch for operatively connecting the endless conveyer to the motor, a bell crank lever for moving said clutch, and an operating platform positioned adjacent to the frame and connected to said bell crank lever.

2. A bottle eonveyer and drainer, compris ing a frame, an endless bottle conveyer mounted on the frame, a guard rail provided on the frame for holding in upright position bottles carried by the conveyer, a means for driving the conveyer, a clutch for operatively connecting the driving means to the conveyer, a bell crank lever for moving. said clutch, and an operating platform positioned adjacent to the frame and connected to said bell crank lever.

I In testimony whereof, I aflix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

SIMON VOLZ.

Witnesses ANNA F. SCHMIDTBAUER, ALMA A. KLUG. 

